NEW YORK (Reuters) - The teams behind President Barack Obama's 2012 social media election campaign and Justin Bieber's fragrance launch were among the nominees on Tuesday for the annual Webby Awards, which honor excellence on the Internet. Tom Hanks, Lady Gaga, Tiger Woods, Alec Baldwin and Charlize Theron were among many other celebrities whose high-flying careers provided fodder for innovative Internet campaigns. The annual Webby Awards honor websites,...

"Yeah, don't be in the moment," said Patton Oswalt as he was greeted by a wave of cellphone cameras upon taking the stage at the 18th Annual Webby Awards Monday night. "It's not like any of this will end up on the internet. " After the chided audience began to put their phones away, he smiled and told them to make sure to use the #Webbys hashtag while they were tweeting. Presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences,...

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - As part of the 18th Annual Webby Awards, 11 mobile health applications ranging from personal wellness journals to allergen and symptom trackers were chosen as honorees. WebMD, available for iOS and Android mobile operating systems, provides a symptom checker allowing users to indicate pain or symptom levels to learn about potential conditions or issues (http://bit.ly/1tHoL2U). "We are thrilled," said David Ziegler, director of mobile product...

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - As part of the 18th Annual Webby Awards, 11 mobile health applications ranging from personal wellness journals to allergen and symptom trackers were chosen as honorees. WebMD, available for iOS and Android mobile operating systems, provides a symptom checker allowing users to indicate pain or symptom levels to learn about potential conditions or issues (http://bit.ly/1tHoL2U). "We are thrilled," said David Ziegler, director of mobile product...

One of the more charming idiosyncrasies of the Webby Awards, the annual awards for achievement in Web creation, is that recipients get five words--and five words only--for their acceptance speeches. So after a night full of innuendos and one-line haiku at Gotham Hall in Manhattan on Monday, the 550 people in attendance were wondering how Al Gore, the former vice president, would respond to his lifetime achievement award. He did not disappoint: "Please don't recount this vote." ---------- ...

Variety has been nominated for best news site for the 18th Annual Webby Awards -- the only entertainment trade publication to be honored in this category by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, which sponsors these awards. We couldn't have done it without our loyal readers, but we still need one more favor: Please create a Webby Awards account and vote for us . Thank you for your continued support in following Variety for the latest news and...

Accept award in five words? Certainly, such pithiness is tricky. But Webby winners have to. The top Internet awards insist. So each year we read. Most disappoint, but some impress. Highlights from last week's speeches: "Can anyone fix my computer?" -- The Beastie Boys, artist of the year "I only get five words? [Expletive], that was five. Four more there. That's three. Two." -- David Bowie, lifetime achievement "I'm just here for...

Variety has scored a nomination alongside the New York Times and other top-tier publications for best news website at the 18th annual Webby Awards. Variety.com will also compete against illustrious general-interest publications including the Guardian, Wired and Rolling Stone for the award, which will be handed out at the Webby ceremony in New York on May 20. The nomination comes just over a year since Penske Media Corporation reintroduced Variety.com to the...

In thinking about the none-too-surprising backlash against the Webby Awards this year, I can't help but picture Rob Schneider and Lindsay Lohan holding Oscars. That they've won. The emerging complaint against the Webbys, which likes to be known as the "Oscars of the Internet" amid many other honors-dispensers vying for the title, is that it is a club little more exclusive than the Internet itself. "There is nothing 'top' about the Webbys," wrote Gawker Media impresario Nick Denton,...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - The teams behind President Barack Obama's 2012 social media election campaign and Justin Bieber's fragrance launch were among the nominees on Tuesday for the annual Webby Awards, which honor excellence on the Internet. Tom Hanks, Lady Gaga, Tiger Woods, Alec Baldwin and Charlize Theron were among many other celebrities whose high-flying careers provided fodder for innovative Internet campaigns. The annual Webby Awards honor websites,...

Obama's Chia The Chia Obama sparked controversy earlier this year when Walgreens pulled the potted presidential head from its shelves. But Chia Pet creator Joe Pedott told WGN-AM 720's John Williams on Tuesday that he presented President Barack Obama with a Chia Obama of his own last month in Indianapolis. Word of the plant with the growable green hair apparently hadn't reached the president. "What's a Chia Obama?" Pedott quoted Obama as saying. You can listen to...

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs. "Hunger Games" battles "Bridesmaids" at MTV Movie Awards LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "The Hunger Games" and "Bridesmaids" will battle for the upcoming MTV Movie Awards as each landed eight nominations on Tuesday to edge out "The Twilight Saga," which picked up only two nods for the widely-watched television program. Post-apocalyptic action film "The Hunger Games," which has stormed box offices with $600 million in...

Comedian Louis C.K. picked up the top honor — person of the year — from the Webby Awards on Tuesday, while social networking newcomers Pinterest, Spotify and Instagram were singled out as Internet innovators. Louis C.K. claimed the Webby for his groundbreaking, digital-only release of the stand-up special "Louis C.K. — Live at the Beacon Theater," which he sold directly from his website for $5 per download. The release generated more than $1 million in two weeks and set...

He was the "Greatest Living American" on the whole wide Web, and now Stephen Colbert has another award thanks to his quest for truthiness and a loyal fan base. On Tuesday, the Comedy Central mock star won Person of the Year in the Webby awards, according to The Associated Press. Colbert was honored for "the innovative way he has used the Internet to interact with fans of 'The Colbert Report.' " His online achievements included a prank to make colbertnation.com the top result of a Google search of...

Tiffany Shlain, 35 Founder, Webby Awards Inc. New York, N.Y. When most Americans had barely heard of the Internet, Tiffany Shlain predicted that communicating with computers one day would connect countries, cultures and communities. It was 1987, and Shlain was a high school student when her writing on this subject won her a yearlong role as a student ambassador to the former Soviet Union. Of course, she was right, and over the last 20 years Shlain...